Doctor! Doctor! Between the time I finished this strip and showed it to a few friends, I got more than a handful of suggestion of other doctors to include. Of course in finding a doctor, it's important to find one familiar with general practice as well as HIV/AIDS, one you can be honest with, and one who wants to work with you as a team. Then we can discuss which doctors should be in the sequel to this strip.

Giving Blood at the San Diego Comic-Con I was invited to be a guest at the annual San Diego Comic-Con, by far the largest comic book convention in the country (about 150,000 attendees). The Red Cross traditionally holds a blood drive at these things, and I did feel a little sad about not being able to donate blood, but the rules aren't as thorough as they should be.

Joe Greenwood It always hurts when someone you're close to passes away, and I could certainly do years worth of strips just on those alone, but it was Joe Greenwood's passing which I think deserves a little more attention here.

The Stimulus Checks For this strip, I posted the question on an HIV+ message board what people were planning on doing with their soon-to-arrive stimulus checks. The proportion of those who made a comment about paying for gasoline was actually higher than what the strip indicates. Thanks to those who gave me some funny bits... and some I was NOT about to draw!

The Donut Hole OK, goofy cartoon this time out, but no more goofy that the Medicare D plan which supposedly covers drug coverage except for the "donut hole" that won't cover ANY costs for about $1500 after you've hit certain points, depending on your plan. This for folks on limited incomes? Good going, Congress...

Dental Care I must have been planning on doing a strip about dental care for years, but just never got motivated enough. Then a series of many dental visits (couple of crowns, stopped counting the cavities/fillings) and my dentist wanting to see a copy of my strip finally prompted me to get one on page.

Martha Stewart Is in Our Dumpster Special thanks to the nutritionists at Project Open Hand for the help on this one, even if my junk food of choice are Chips Ahoys and peanuts M&M's. The trail mix is ideal for those days when you know you should be eating and either lack the appetite or energy to eat properly.

Bedtime TV Having had my bouts of insominia as well as too much sleep, some buddies of mine and I got in this often heated discussion of whether falling asleep with a TV on helps or hinders. My drawing of Anderson Cooper didn't mean to downplay his looks, but I think I certainly nailed Nancy Grace and Vampira, er, Ann Coulter.

Saving Face You probably can't read the small type on the lower left, "Note: It is, as always, the policy of the strip not to endorse any specific method of treatment." Frankly, I'll share my experiences but never say my way is the best... or only way. I'd been on (and still am) a clinical trial on a new entry inhibitor drug which wiped out my viral load faster then NBC could cancel The Book of Daniel... but still had that "AIDS look." That's why I decided for "one of those facial wasting treatments." (Lookin' good!) The strip is based on The Portrait of Dorian Gray, the "attic" is actually the apartment of friends so cluttered that even scared the crew of Queer Eye off. <g>

Too Many Balls I think the strip speaks (or bitches) for itself...

Back in Our Day This one came out of the realization of what life was like being diagnosed "back then" as opposed to those newly diagnosed. Not the "death sentence" perception, but the overload of information on the web.

Too Many Balls I think the strip speaks (or bitches) for itself...

You HAVE to Do a Strip About... I certainly try to cover as many topics as I can in my strip, and while I have used ideas suggested by the readers, I get a little perturbed when someone insists I have to do a strip about their pet project. Look at the strips, folks, they say "by Chris Companik," not "by jdru67@aol.com"

At Bat One of my great passions is baseball, particularly the Atlanta Braves. Now I truly suck at the sport, but that hasn't stopped me from joining (and destroying) one or two softball teams' records in the process. That aside, I'm fascinated by the trivia and stats announcers make (more on TV, granted) and wondered where it could go. And if you recognize the catcher who gives me the pep talk, let me know -- I think I captured him pretty well.

The Fishing Trip I don't care how long with you live with HIV, I will always have a huge problem with the term "long-term survivor." Unlike breast cancer (as an example), you're never "free" of HIV, whether you've hit undetectable or some year marker. I knew the dialog I had in mind for this strip but couldn't come up with a setting. But once I figured what my "buddies" and I were doing ... fishing for how to phrase something properly ... it all came together pretty well.

The Flasher and the Drag Queen I wish I could explain the motivation for this one, but it may be the first strip I did starting with a title. But the second part of the strip is a true account, though the drag queen was not quite that glamorous. Not even close.

Smart Ass Answers to Stupid Questions "How do you take so many pills?' "Can I catch HIV from (fill in the blank)?" Now those of us who've been HIV+ a while are used to getting these moronic questions, but I've got the solution here. Inspired by an old strip in MAD Magazine, I've turned what they called "Snappy Answers" into " Smart Ass Answers" because, well, because quite frankly, I can be the biggest smart ass you'll ever meet.

Emily Litella I have to give credit for the malapropism in this one to a couple of the great guys in my Tuesday night support group Positive Attitudes, as one kept making the same mistake poor sweet Emily Litella would have. When someone (OK, me) corrected him, another member said "You should do a strip on this." Assuming he didn't mean for me to take my clothes off, I did.

How NOT to Be Seen Though the title is stolen from a Monty Python sketch, I couldn't really think of a better one for this episode. Face it, some of the pill bottles, in varying sizes and colors, can overwhelm your home, and not everyone is as open about their HIV status as they could be. Here's some redecorating tips!

Dawn Averitt .When Gerry Hoyt, editor of AIDS Survival Project's Survival News , sent out his usual e-mail reminding me and others of the looming deadline, he also listed contributions already received. For this month, those contributions centered heavily on women's issues. Now while I had produced a TV special on the chronology of how the AIDS epidemic affected women since the beginning of the crisis the year before, here was a chance to spotlight one woman in particular, Dawn Averitt. While the strip only skims Dawn's accomplishments, I hope I gave her the respect and kudos she richly deserves.

Just My Type. No, despite the appearance of Keanu Reeves here, the "type" isn't referring to that kind of type. Are you confused, frustrated, exasperated by phenotypes, genotypes... it could be worse!